First-year Faculty of Science student Gregory Petryk one of this year’s Schulich Leader Scholars
The Schulich Leader Scholarship is awarded every year to students enrolling in STEM programs at 20 Canadian universities.
Two incoming students were awarded Schulich Leader Scholarships upon their entry to the University of Manitoba this year. One of those students is Gregory Petryk from Oak Park High School in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Petryk started his studies at UM this fall in the Faculty of Science.
The Schulich Leader Scholarships have been awarded to UM students since 2012 to high school graduates starting their studies in Science, Technology, Engineering or Math (STEM) at the university. The Schulich Leader Scholarship is a national scholarship awarded annually to high school graduates starting their studies at one of 20 participating universities from across the country. Students receive awards valued at $100,000 for science, technology or math and $120,000 for engineering.
Schulich Leaders are students who demonstrate an entrepreneurial mindset, strong leadership qualities and academic excellence. The Schulich Foundation recognizes the roles Schulich Leaders play in pushing the STEM field and forward supports students in their studies. Through the scholarship, the Foundation supports future leaders and encourages students to continue to be leaders in their respective fields.
Gregory Petryk, Schulich Leader Scholarship recepient.
Petryk’s leadership skills started with his time at Oak Park High School. He was a member of the Oak Park Peer Tutoring program helping students with math, science, and physics. For Petryk, his interest in science comes from “how they can be applied to daily problems, making life easier.”
By being a leader and a role model for the field of STEM through tutoring, he demonstrated communication skills and creativity to help his school’s community. His tutoring continues to this day, being there to help those who may otherwise not seek out guidance for their studies.
He was a member of Oak Park’s Philanthropy committee which helped school events. Here, Petryk bridged the gap between the school and the community. As one of the students involved with interviews, it is with his input that the committee could assess organizations’ capacities to contribute to the school and the community.
Although a student in STEM, Oak Park High School was also a space for Petryk to get involved with the arts, specifically music. Serving as a section leader for three bands at Oak Park, his music experience taught him valuable communication skills and how to both provide and receive feedback, often being a guide for the band. His musical pursuits have continued into university where he was accepted into the UM’s Wind Ensemble where he will participate in an outreach tour to inspire students in Northern Manitoba.
Petryk hopes to use these skills he developed as a leader in high school to pursue his passions and his studies in Mathematics to reach more people and support them where they are at. As a Schulich Leader, Petryk is one student of many in a network of students wanting to help bring positive change to their communities: “[The Schulich Leader Scholarship] connects me to other Schulich Leaders, who can show me issues they are passionate about, which allows me to help more people, as the first step in being able to help is knowing there’s a problem.”